Four men who were warming their feet by the Eternal Flame in Nevinnomyssk, a city in the Stavropol Krai in southern Russia, have been sentenced to actual prison terms.

The court in Nevinnomyssk, a city in the Stavropol Krai in southern Russia, has sentenced four men to up to two and a half years in a penal settlement for warming their feet by the Eternal Flame. This was reported by the regional Investigative Committee’s Telegram channel.

The men were found guilty under the article on desecrating symbols of Russia’s military glory by a group acting in prior agreement (Part 4 of Article 354.1 of the Russian Criminal Code). They were given sentences ranging from two years and three months to two and a half years in a penal settlement.

The detention of the four men in relation to the desecration of the Eternal Flame became public in November 2024. In a video published by the Investigative Committee, four men are seen standing on the pedestal of the obelisk, with two of them standing on the rails surrounding the Eternal Flame itself. At times they bring their feet close to the flame; in another segment, they warm their hands over the fire.

A few days later, Mash Gor published an apology video from the detained men. They also gave their names: Arslanbek Aliyev, Gusen Aliyev, Shamil Magomedov and Magomed Imiev. All four are from Dagestan.

In the video, one of the detainees confirmed that they had wanted to warm up by the Eternal Flame: “We didn’t know you weren’t supposed to step there. I acknowledge my mistake and want to apologise to the entire city of Nevinnomyssk. I am sorry.”

At the end of October, three men were sentenced to actual prison terms, also for desecrating the same Eternal Flame in Nevinnomyssk. They were charged under the same article and each received a year in a penal settlement. The verdict was issued after the men were seen bringing their feet close to the fire, one of them spat into the Eternal Flame, and another did a somersault on the pedestal of the obelisk—all of this was regarded as desecration of a symbol of Russia’s military glory and an insult to the memory of the defenders of the Motherland.